Vietnam commits to international water cooperation

Vietnam is willing to cooperate with countries and exchange
experiences in water resource management and coping with natural
disasters.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan
made the affirmation during the plenary session of the second
Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS) in Chiang Mai , Thailand on May
20.

Nhan said Vietnam , like other countries in
the Asia-Pacific region, is facing great challenges in water security
and natural disasters in the context of global climate change.

Natural disasters have claimed around 400 lives in Vietnam and
caused damage equal to 1.2 percent of Gross Domestic Product ( GDP )
each year over the past decade.

In efforts to cope
with the challenges, Vietnam has promulgated and implemented
strategies on water security and water-related disaster prevention, he
said.

The Deputy Prime Minister called for
ratification of the UN Convention on the Law of International Water
Resources Utilisation, strengthened cooperation and experience sharing
in water resource management and exploitation, and a regional common
strategy on water resource management towards a sustainable development
goal.

He affirmed that Vietnam attaches importance
to and has been proactively cooperating in water resource management
with countries it shares rivers, especially the Mekong River .

Participants reached consensus on the need to work out an action plan
in the context of increasing challenges posed by floods in Asia-Pacific -
the region most affected by natural disasters in the world.

The summit issued the Chiang Mai declaration , indicating regional leaders’ interest in and commitment to the problem.

On the sidelines of the summit, Deputy PM Nhan paid a courtesy visit
to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The two sides affirmed to further
reinforce cooperation towards the establishment of a strategic
partnership between the two countries, scheduled for this year.-VNA